Lyon County times. [volume] (Silver City, Nev.) 1874-1907, 1887-06-25
CHAPTER x.
JOHN HAS AN ESCAPE.

CHAPTER x.
JOHN HAS AN ESCAPE.
On the following Monday John, taking
Jantje to drive him, departed in a rough
Scotch cart, TO which were harnessed two OF
the best horses at Mooifontein, to shoot buck
at Hans Coetzee's.
He reached the place at about $50 o'clock,
and concluded, from the fact of the presence
Of several carts and horses, that he was not
the only guest Indeed, the first person that
he saw as the cart pulled up was his late enc
my, Frank Muller
"Kek dook). baas," said Jantje, "there is
Baas Frank talking to Basutu!"
John was, as may be imagined, not best
pleased at this meeting. He had always dis
liked the man, and since Mullers conduct on
the previous Friday, and Jantje's story of the
dark deed of blood in which he had been the
principal actor, he positively loathed the sight
of him. He got out of the cart, and was go
ing to walk round to the back of the house in
order to avoid him, when Muller, to all ap
pearance, suddenly became aware of his pres
ence and advanced to meet him with the ut
most cordiality.
"How do you do, captainp be said, holding
out his hand, which John just touched. $50
you have come to shoot buck with Om Coet-
zee; going to show us Transvaalers how to do
it, eh! There, captain, don't look as stiff as
rifle barrel l know what you are thinking
Of; that little business at Wakkerstrooin on
Friday, is it noti Well, now, l tell you what
it is, was in tho wrong, and l amt afraid to
say so as between man and man. / had had
a glass, that was the fact, and did not quite
know what was about. We have got to live
Ia e.. Ill.
and be brothers again. never bear malice,
not 1. 1t is not the Lords will that we should
bear malice Hit out from the shoulder, l
say, and then forget all about it. If 1t hadn't
been for that little monkey" he added, jerk
ing his thumb in the direction of Jantje, who
was holding the horses heads, sit would never
have happened, and it is not nice that two
Christians should quarrel about such as he"
Muller jerked out his long speech In a sue
cession of sentences, something as school
boy repeats hardly learned lesson, fdgeting
his feet and letting his eyes travel about the
ground as he did so; and it was evident to
John, who stood quite still and listened to it
In icy silence, that it was by no means an ex-
temporary one. 1t had too clearly been COM
posed for the occasion.
II do not wish to quarrel with anybody,
Meinheer Muller" he answered at length.
81 never do quarrel unless it is forced on me,
and then" he added, grimly, II do my best
to make it unpleasant for my enemy. The
other day you attacked first my servant and
then myself. am glad that you now see
that this was an improper thing to do, and,
SO far as / am concerned, there is an end Of
the matter" and he turned to enter the
house.
Muller accompanied him as far as where
Jantje was standing at the horses heads. Here
he stopped, and, putting his hand in his
pocket, took out a two shilling piece and threw
it to the Hottentot, calling to him to catch it.
Jantje was holding the horses with one
hand. In the other he held his stick-a long
walking kerrie that he always carried, the
same on which he had shown Bessie the
notohes In order to catch the piece Of money
he dropped the stick, and Muller's quick eye
catching sight Of the notches beneath the
knob, he stopped down, picked 1t up, and
examined it.
"What do these mean, boyf' he asked,
pointing to the line of big and little notches,
some of which had evidently been cut years
ago.
Jantje touched his hat, spat upon the
"Scotchman," as the natives Of that part Of
Africa call a two shilling piece, and pocketed
1t before he answered. The fact that the
giver had murdered all his near relations did
not make the gift less desirable in his eyes
Hottentot moral sense is not very elevated.
"No, baas," be said, with q curious grin,
@that is how ! reckon. II anybody beats
Jantie. Jantje cuts a notch upon the stick,
and every night before he goes to sleep he
looks at it, and says: One day you WIN
strike that man twice who struck you once,
and so on, baas Look what line of them
there are, baas. One day win pay them all
back again, Baas Frank"
In another minute old Hans Coetzee came,
and announced that 1t was time to be moving.
Accordingly the whole party got into their
carts or on TO their shooting horses as the
case might be, and started. Frank Muller
was, John noticed, mounted as usual on his
fine black horse. After driving for more
than half an hour along an indefinite kind of
wagon track, the leading cart, in which was
old Hans Coetzee himself, a Malay driver
and q cofored Cape boy, turned to the left
across the open veldt, and the others followed
In turn. This went on for some time, till at
last they reached the crest Of rise that com
manded a large sweep Of open country, and
bare Hans halted and held up biz hand,